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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. snap — to click
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. land — a country
  8. can — to be able to
  9. spring — a coil
  10. bore — to tire
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. spring — the season
  13. season — in sport
  14. can — a tin
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. season — of the year
  17. land — to come down
  18. spring — of water
  19. bore — to drill
  20. lie — to recline
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. can — a tin
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. straw — dry grass

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com